FC Energie Cottbus is a German football club based in Cottbus, Brandenburg. It was founded in 1963 as SC Cottbus in what was East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, Energie played six seasons in the third tier of the German football league system before floating between the 2. Bundesliga and Bundesliga for 17 years between 1997 and 2014. From 2014 to 2016, the club played in the third tier, 3. Liga, and were then relegated to the Regionalliga Nordost. In 2018, they were promoted back into the 3. Liga, only to be relegated again the next season.
The DDR-Oberliga was the top-level association football league in East Germany.
Ulf Kirsten is a German former professional footballer and manager, who played as a striker. Nicknamed Der Schwatte, he is the first player in history to reach a total 100 caps playing with two different national teams. Kirsten's biggest success was the victory of the 1992–93 DFB-Pokal.
1. FC Magdeburg is a German association football club based in the city of Magdeburg. The club was founded in 1965 and spent all but one season in East Germany top flight, the DDR-Oberliga, winning three championships and seven cup titles. It is the only East German club to have won a European title, winning the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1974. After German reunification, the club fell on hard times and only entered professional football in 2015 when the side was promoted to the 3. Liga.
SV Babelsberg 03 is a German association football club based in Potsdam-Babelsberg, on the outskirts of Berlin. The team was founded as Sport-Club Jugendkraft 1903 and again as SG Karl-Marx Babelsberg in 1948 as successor to the pre-war side SpVgg Potsdam 03.
Kieler Sportvereinigung Holstein von 1900 e.V., simply as KSV Holstein or Kieler SV Holstein, commonly known as Holstein Kiel, is a German association football and sports club based in the city of Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein. From the 1900s through the 1960s the club was one of the most dominant sides in northern Germany. Holstein appeared regularly in the national playoffs, capturing their most important title, the German football championship in 1912, and finishing as vice-champions in 1910 and 1930. Holstein also won six regional titles and finished as runners-up another nine times. They remained a first-division side until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963.
Torsten Gütschow is a German football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is most associated with Dynamo Dresden, with whom he had two successful spells, playing top level football in East Germany and after reunification. In between these he played for three other German clubs, and spent six months with Galatasaray of the Turkish Süper Lig. A strong and instinctive goalscorer, Gütschow was top scorer in each of the last three seasons of the DDR-Oberliga, and was the last East German Footballer of the Year. He won three international caps for East Germany, scoring two goals between 1984 and 1989. Since retiring he has taken up coaching, and has been manager of TuS Heeslingen.
The 1973–74 DDR-Oberliga was the 25th season of the DDR-Oberliga, the first tier of league football in East Germany.
Eduard "Ede" Geyer is a German football manager and former player. He was the last manager of the East German national team.
The DDR-Liga was, prior to German reunification in 1990, the second level of football competition in the DDR, being roughly equivalent to the 2. Bundesliga in West Germany.
The 1990–91 season of the former DDR-Oberliga, renamed NOFV-Oberliga for this season, was the last season of the top East German league.
Wolfgang "Maxe" Steinbach is an East German former footballer and manager who spent most of his career playing for 1. FC Magdeburg in the DDR-Oberliga. In 2006, he was elected Best 1. FC Magdeburg Player of All Times in a telephone vote.
Matthias Maucksch is a German former footballer who played as midfielder or defender and worked as a manager in different Teams of Germanys 4th and 3rd leagues.
Steffen Heidrich is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
Jörn Lenz is a German former professional footballer who played as a defender. Lenz had four different spells with BFC Dynamo during his professional playing career and has continued to serve as part of the club's backroom staff since retiring in 2008. Lenz played a total of 374 matches for BFC Dynamo between 1988 and 2008. He made two appearances for BFC Dynamo in the 1989-90 European Cup Winners' Cup.
Jens Melzig is a former professional German footballer who played as a defender.
Rayk Schröder is a German former footballer. He spent four seasons in the Bundesliga with TSV 1860 Munich, F.C. Hansa Rostock and FC Energie Cottbus.
ASG Vorwärts Dessau is a German association football club based in Dessau-Roßlau, Saxony-Anhalt.
Rainer Troppa is a retired football defender. Troppa began his professional career with BSG Energie Cottbus. He was transferred to BFC Dynamo when BSG Energie Cottbus was relegated to second tier DDR-Liga after the 1975-76 DDR-Oberliga season. He played for the East German national team, featuring in the unsuccessful qualifying campaigns for the 1982 and 1986 World Cups and the 1984 European Championship.
Jürgen Piepenburg is a former German footballer who played in the DDR-Oberliga as a forward.
